1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to property address indication. More particularly, it relates to a device for mounting upon the top of a mailbox which is capable of illuminating the address of the property associated with the mailbox so it can be seen in the absence of light.
2. Description of Prior Art
Mailboxes are well known in the prior art and are the most commonly used devices for delivery of mail by the U.S. Postal Service. Typically, a mailbox associated with a particular home or business is located along the edge of the property on which the home or business is situated. The mailbox may have the address of the property, in the form of indica, stenciled upon the mailbox which assists the mail delivery person in identifying the address of the home or business. Typically, mail is delivered by the U.S. Postal Service during daylight hours, therefore there is no need to illuminate the address indicia. However, the indicia also acts to guide others who may be attempting to locate a particular home or business. For instance, if a certain individual lives at 125 Main Street, a person trying to locate this property may look at the numbers stenciled on the mailbox until number 125 is recognized while driving on Main Street thereby indicating that the desired property has been located.
At night however, this may be more difficult. It can be very difficult to legibly read the address numbers on mailboxes due to the absence of light. Even on well lit streets, it can be difficult to read the indicia stenciled on the mailbox. If the individual is driving a motorized vehicle and there is other motorized vehicles behind the lead vehicle, it quickly becomes dangerous to repeatedly slow down and speed while attempting to locate the home or business.
Of course, many homes are well lit and specifically shine light upon indicia which may be stenciled directly to the house or business. This certainly can assist in identifying the address of a particular property. However, in rural areas, many homes, for instance, are situated far from the entrance of the driveway. Typically though, the mailbox remains mounted proximal to the entrance of the driveway. Accordingly, the same problem persists as described above. In low light settings, individuals will find it difficult to locate the home or business that they seek due to not be able to read the indicia which identifies the particular home or business.
Some have attempted to alleviate this dilemma by mounting indicia on a small illuminated box. These devices are typically staked into the ground near the entrance of the property. Unfortunately, such a device has inherent deficiencies. First and foremost, most people are not looking at the ground of the property but the mailbox or building itself in an attempt to locate a specific property. Accordingly, many people merely overlook the small staked device. Further, such a device can be easily removed and therefore stolen or removed by vandals. Further, where two or more properties are closely located, someone searching for a particular home or business may become confused as to which property the small box is associated.
What is needed is a device which can overcome all of the deficiencies in the prior art. Such a device should be illuminated so that it can visually broadcast the property address indicia at night. Further, the device should be mounted to the mailbox so that people can easily find the location of the property they seek. Since the device does not need to illuminate the indicia during daylight hours, it should include a means for shutting off during daylight hours and thereafter illuminate during nighttime hours. The device would also excel over prior art devices if it is mounted directly to the mailbox to avoid be stolen. But at the same time, the device should be easy to install so that it can be retrofit to existing mailboxes already employed. Since batteries quickly discharge, it would also be advantageous to utilize rechargeable batteries. And, since daylight hours are present in most areas of the world at least some portion of the day, it would be advantageous to utilize a solar cell for recharging the batteries thereby eliminating the need for an external charging source. The device should also include a light means which is inexpensive and uses a minimal amount of power. Finally, the light means should be enclosed within a housing which permits light to diffuse outwardly from within while permitting indicia to be stenciled thereupon.
I have invented an improved property address indication device which overcomes all of the deficiencies seen in the prior art. My device includes a housing and a base member. The device mounts to the rounded apex portion of a traditionally-shaped, generally rectangular mailbox. My device permits illumination at night of indicia stenciled to the device housing, representing the address of the property. A light, such as an LED, is employed to illuminate an inner channel of the device which can be activated in the absence of ambient light. A rechargeable battery powers the light and solar cell, mounted to the device housing, recharges the battery.
In particular, my device includes a housing having a central channel formed under a pair of longitudinally disposed side walls, a top wall and a pair of opposed end walls. In the preferred embodiment, at least one longitudinal side wall is removable, however, nothing herein limits that both side walls could not be removable. Bottom edges along each longitudinal side wall rest upon outwardly extending shelf portions of the base member. A reflective film can be added to a top surface of the base member which is then in turn enclosed within the housing inner channel to assist in dispersing the light given off by the light source.
A photosensitive cell mounted proximal to the solar cell acts as a switch to turn the light on and off based on the ambient light present around the device. Indicia mounted along one or both longitudinal side walls of the housing is illuminated by the light source means.
A set of locking tabs mounted downwardly along an inner surface of a top wall of the housing along with a set of vertical guide rails positioned near four inner corners of the housing assist in receiving and retaining the longitudinal side walls in place. Further, the longitudinal side walls include small outwardly projecting shoulder portions disposed along an outer bottom edge of the side walls which rest within retention slots of the guide rails.